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Public health and consumer advocacy groups are attacking Senate legislation designed to tighten oversight of specialized pharmacies such as the one at the center of this past fall’s deadly meningitis outbreak, saying it does not adequately address health risks.

Under the Senate bill, companies that make sterile products without or in advance of a prescription and sell those products across state lines would be required to register with the FDA and be subject to regular inspections.

Some consumer groups say the category is too narrowly defined. Only companies that meet all the criteria would be covered. Excluded would be large compounding pharmacies that sell defective or life-threatening oral drugs, topical creams and gels, said Nasima Hossain with the U.S. Public Interest Research Group, a consumer advocacy organization.